Earth-like planets, Antarctic sea voyages, 3D-printed body parts and a big buzz about bees - February was a huge month in science news. How well do you remember the discoveries of last month?<\p>

February was a bumper month in science news. Have you been paying attention? Put yourself to the test.

Researchers from Geoscience Australia are on board the RV Investigator’s latest trip to Antarctica. They filmed new underwater footage that revealed what?

CSIRO researchers developed a new low-carb diet. What is it good for managing?

Low-carb diet meal
An image of Baked fish with thyme and fennel-seed crust

What significant International UN day was celebrated in February?

Green planet: tropical rainforests have produced more growth in response to rising carbon dioxide. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/Flickr, CC BY
large image of planet Earth

Macropods (the kangaroo family) are predominantly foraging herbivores. The swamp wallaby (Wallabia bicolor) is considered to be no different, consuming mainly plants. However, a recent study out of The Nature Conservancy pointed to examples of the swamp wallaby eating what?


a swamp wallaby

Image: Russell Spence

There was quite a buzz about some new research from a team of scientists from Queen Mary University in London last month. The study showed that bees have cognitive powers way beyond what we thought an insect could have. What clever trick were the bees able to achieve?

A bee poking it's head of of a honey comb

So 3D-printing body parts is a thing. We helped Melbourne-based company Anatomics create a replacement sternum for a patient in England. This is the second 3D-printed sternum we’re worked on, what made this one different?


BBC image of the 3D model
An computer generated image of the 3D printed device in the ribcage

Image: BBC

A team of astronomers in the USA made a prediction about that, give or take a year, a pair of stars will merge and explode, becoming one of the brightest objects in the sky for a short period. In which year did they predict this event would occur?


two bight stars coliding on a black background

Image: ESO/L. Calçada

Cathedral termites build huge mounds up to eight metres high in the Northern Territory, Western Australia and Queensland - representing some of the tallest non-human animal structures in the world (comparatively speaking). A paper published last month in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters looked at their evolutionary history. Where do the researchers think the termite’s ancestors originated?


Termite mounds

Image: Jan Sobotnik

One of the most internet-breaking discoveries of last month was NASA finding seven new earth-sized exoplanets around a tiny, nearby, ultra-cool dwarf star called TRAPPIST-1. Three of the planets orbit in the habitable zone around the star and all of them could have liquid water in the right conditions. Amazing, right? The question is, how long would it take for us to reach these planets with current technology?


An illustrive visualisation showing water, rocky caves and a setting sun

Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Curtin University researchers recorded what unexpected animal singing in choruses at dawn and at dusk in Western Australia last month?


The sun setting on the Southern Ocean

Hint: It's not a bird!

Carbon fibre - It’s far stronger than steel at just a fraction of steel’s weight. CSIRO and Deakin University researchers launched a new facility in Geelong that will revolutionise the manufacturing industry with what Australian first?

Carbon fibre weave
Carbon fibre weave

A new paper by New Zealand geoscience agency, GNS Science, discovered that several islands, notably New Zealand and New Caledonia, are connected by submerged continental crust across a large area of Earth’s surface. What did they call the new continent?


The EverWhite Wool process maintains the bleached whiteness of wool through processing
The EverWhite Wool process maintains the bleached whiteness of wool through processing

Say what now?

Carnegie Mellon University’s Libratus program beat the world's top players in what game?


Intelligent machines are getting better at understanding our conversation. Image credit - Shutterstock/Gary Blakeley
Close up photograph of two golden old style robots

Image: - Shutterstock/Gary Blakeley

Want to stay up-to-date on the latest science news? Check out our new podcast Interronauts to get your fix.

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